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Fresh

The Tomatometer is 60% or higher.

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The Tomatometer is 59% or lower.

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Movies and TV shows are Certified Fresh with a steady Tomatometer of 75% or higher after a set amount of reviews (80 for wide-release movies, 40 for limited-release movies, 20 for TV shows), including 5 reviews from Top Critics.

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After suffering an inexplicable seizure which leaves her paralyzed on her right side,19-year-old illiterate kitchen maid Augustine (27 year-old singer-turned-actress Soko in a break out performance), is shipped off to Paris' all female psychiatric hospital Pitié-Salpêtriere which specializes in detecting the then-fashionable ailment of 'hysteria'. Augustine captures the attention of Dr. Charcot (Vincent Lindon, Mademoiselle Chambon, Welcome) after a seizure which appears to give her intense physical pleasure. Intrigued, he begins using her as his principal subject hypnotizing her in front of fellow doctors - as she displays her spectacular fits in lecture halls - and eventually blurring the lines between doctor and patient. (c) Music Box Films… More

That the film raises interesting questions might be good enough, except that, while the movie goes about denying us information we want, it gives us details we don't need. "Augustine" churns slowly and doesn't make for compelling viewing.

Fiercely yet faithfully imagined by... Alice Winocur, [the film] is not exclusively a mystery. It's also part love story, part horror story, as well as a parable of gender, power and the enduring enigma that is the mind-body connection.

Deconstructs late 19th century forms of torture, sexual exploitation and degradation, the female body as theater, closet peep shows, and the medical practitioner fantasy of 'a slave looking for a master' that all defined psychiatry back then.

Audience Reviews for Augustine

This almost-good drama is a missed opportunity, considering the intriguing premise and the talent of the actors involved. What could have been a fascinating exploration of a psychological illness gives place to too much clichéd doctor-patient sexual tension.

The movie starts with Augustine(Soko), a maid, feeling unwell while preparing to serve that night's dishes. Still, the show must go on, which turns out to be a mistake when she has a seizure on the dining room floor between courses. The following day when one of her eyes is still closed shut, her cousin brings her to a nearby hospital. Instead of a quick examination and treatment, Augustine is disappointed to hear that she will be admitted, and soon informed that she will also be expected to work. And as far as praying goes, she is told not to appeal to the usual person, but to somebody more local in the person of Dr. Charcot(Vincent Lindon) who finally takes notice of her when she has another seizure.

"Augustine" starts well enough with its copious period detail, some implied like the level of ignorance, such as Augustine not knowing what menstruation is. Mostly the target is the patriarchy of the period, especially with women under the watchful gaze of the men.(And we all know the corset was the work of the devil, right?) As fascinating as this is and even with the great Vincent Lindon on the job, the movie never really catches fire until the climax when in quick succession and with the aid of a few well-timed furtive glances, the apple cart is not only upturned but pretty much also tossed down a flight of stairs before being hit by an oncoming vehicle.